Pretty well written with no glaring plot holes, though the feel can get wonky with all the different POVs.

It’s a paranormal romance! People love those!

Summary

Here we go!

Okay, so this book picks up immediately where the novella Alpha & Omega leaves off. Bran and Anna are going to Anna’s apartment to pack up her stuff to take to Oregon, and Charles is locked up with the Chicago pack’s doctor in a werewolf proof cell in the pack HQ. Anna and Bran are being escorted by some of Anna’s old pack. Anna’s apartment is sparsely furnish (what with her being poor and all). Anna and Bran manage to pack up like 2 meager boxes before they get a call to go to Charles because he’s being a surly injured werewolf.

Anna and Bran get over to Charles at Chicago pack HQ and Bran warns Anna that hurt!Charles in wolf form is pretty vicious. Anna goes in and Charles gets all defensive of her but is otherwise fine. Bran decides that they all need to fly home that night (to get to a funeral). Charles stays in wolf form the entire flight as Bran (literally) flies them home to Aspen Creek.

Bran, Anna and Charles go to Charles’ home. Anna feels like she doesn’t belong in such a nice place with Charles, and Charles senses her anxiety and changes back even though it will slow his healing. Anna freaks out a little and eventually they calm down and go to bed.

The funeral is awkward. The man was a werewolf gone wrong and Bran had had to kill him. The town was angry that Bran had killed him. So there were glances and a general mood of discontent as Bran and his family showed up. Sam, Charles’ brother, gives a soliloquy and the family does a song. Anna, sitting in the pew watching, gets confronted by Asil, a semi-mad werewolf sitting behind her. Charles gets defensive. Asil says Bran should have killed him when he asked him to.

Bran tells Sam to look at Charles’ wounds (from before) and discovers there was still some silver in there, which is why it was taking him so long to heal. Bran tells Charles there might be a thing that he will need Charles to look into when he’s better (and more settled with Anna).

That night Bran summons Charles because a ranger has been attacked by a were. The situation cannot be left alone while Charles heals. Bran tells him he needs to go investigate. Anna tells Charles she’s going with him. Charles tries to protest, but Bran says it might be good for them, and a good way to bond.

So they pack up all the winter gear and head up the mountain to find the lone wolf. They camp in the snow and eat a lot of food. They eventually get attacked by a large werewolf. Charles chases after the were. Anna meets Mary, a “ranger.” Then gets attacked by a were. Charles comes back and acts all lovey and backs up Anna’s story. Charles and Anna get caught up in a witches spell (the witch is Mary, formerly Mariposa). Anna manages to free them and Charles drives the witch away.

They meet up with Walter in the woods that night when they try to stay warm despite losing all their gear. Walter instantly latches onto Anna, and Anna to him. Charles and Walter do their wolf thing to keep Anna warm that night.

Asil realizes that the witch up on the mountain is the witch that’s been stalking him nearly all his life. So he heads up the mountain to help Charles and Anna.

In the morning Walter takes Charles and Anna to the cabin he knows of that he used to stay in, figuring that was where the witch had holed up. Asil gets tricked into helping Mariposa (because her wolf guardian is his former mate’s soul, sort of). Charles sets the cabin on fire and the three start down the mountain.

Bran realizes what’s going on and heads up to help Charles. He gets caught by the witch and cuts off his pack ties so that she can’t get to his pack through him. Charles, Anna and Walter find Asil’s car and head back up the mountain following his tracks.

Bran worries that if Mariposa tries to make him kill Charles that he’ll go beserker again (like he did when his evil mother tried to make him kill Sam once upon a time). Asil lures away his wife. Charles takes on the witch. Anna tries to help. Charles has to fight Bran. Walter takes a hit from the witch to save Anna, killing him. Anna kills the witch. She worries Bran has killed Charles, but he’s still alive. She’s able to use her omega abilities to calm Bran and Charles. Asil’s mate disappears. Everyone’s ok. And Bran buries Walter as part of the clan.

Everything basically works out.

Evaluation

So, like a lot of other people (apparently) I made the mistake of thinking this was the first book in the series. Technically it is, and we didn’t have too much figuring out what was going on, but really the first story in this series is a short story titled: Alpha and Omega.

This may be a controversial opinion, but I may like this series just a bit more than Mercy Thompson’s series. I think that mainly boils down to Charles. Charles is a badass (but a total puppy when it comes to Anna), but he’s also pretty quiet and can keep things close to the vest. I also love the aspect of Brother Wolf. Plus, Charles just has this way of just deadpan saying things…. I just really like Charles you guys.

Anna is sweet, if a little beaten up. Its clear she’s had a rough time of it (boy does her last 5 years or so suck). So naturally she’s pretty meek and her life feels a bit out of control. She did just meet Charles and their already mated. The poor girl is struggling to re-find herself. So, she’s sympathetic character. I think the way Patricia Briggs handles Anna’s past is pretty good. There are some moments where I found myself wondering how Anna isn’t worse off with all the past brutalizing and all, but it all seems to work out mostly.

I almost forgot our favorite Vietnam Vet Walter! And that would’ve been bad. Walter is the tragic hero we deserve. I don’t know what it is about Walter, the ‘Nam vet with serious PTSD, but we loved him (even though Vietnam Vet with PTSD is a huge cliche and we’d always sigh and say “‘Nam” every time). There’s something about Walter.

There’s Bran (Mr. Mysterious aka Charles’ dad aka leader of all the North American werewolves) and Asil (the half mad seer running pretty literally from his past). Plus all the side characters and the big bad witch. All of whom had their own flavor and personality.

Setting= pretty darn good. Though really you only get a feel for Charles’ home and the side of the mountain.

Plot? Not bad. Semi-mystery, action-y, romance-y tale. I can’t say it was unbelievable (because paranormal romance), but it didn’t have super gaping plot holes (which is always nice). Didn’t super appreciate the random chapters in other characters heads always, but it was interesting to get their side of the story at times.

I liked it a lot, and we really enjoyed the narrator for the audiobook (even though he changes the way he voices people in the second book).